July 14, 2015

Penny Scallan Backpacks

If you know anything about me by now, it's that I'm a researcher. I have a real talent for scouring the internet and comparing products until I find exactly what I need. I'd already invested a lot of time in to researching the current quality lunchboxes on the market, now it was time to turn my attention backpacks for school and kindergarten.

My search was actually proving a little fruitless at first. The backpacks were all either too flimsy, too small or too big, too ugly or not age appropriate. I couldn't believe it when I stumbled across Penny Scallan'srange of backpacks. It was like divine intervention.

Maisie and I put the Penny Scallan medium backback to the test on an adventure to our local park on a recent freezing cold winters morning. She packed all four pockets with all of her important treasures - her beloved Cuski, a sequin mask, a wooden ice cream cone and cake, a beaded necklace, a plastic banana and some books. Perfect!

However, normally she will be transporting to crèche (soon to be Kindy) her Yumbox lunchbox and a change of clothes which all fit in perfectly with room to spare in the main pocket and some spare pull ups which slot nicely in to the front pocket. Her drink bottle slips in to a purpose made external side pocket with a draw string on the right of the backpack. I love this as it is easy for her to access her drink bottle when ever she needs it.

The Penny Scallan Medium Backpack is the perfect size for a preschooler. Not too big or too small. It's completely proportionate to her body size and will grow with her until she is ready to start school and move up to the Penny Scallan Large Backpack. The straps are well padded and very comfortable too. Maisie was super happy to be wearing her "big girl bag"

In terms of quality, Penny Scallan is the best. All of the backpacks are made from a thick cotton canvas and covered with a scratch resistant coating. It looks and feels like oil cloth but thicker. It's perfect for when you're walking to and from school on rainy days - no wet school books! The zips are big and reliable, and all the stitching is heavy duty. Plus, all of the backpacks are BPA free and come with a silicone name tag for personalising.

And of course, they come in very stylish but age appropriate designs. Maisie is wearing Crispy Apple. There are some lovely designs for boys which is fabulous as I know boys tend to be under catered for in the clothing and accessory departments compared to girls.

The medium backpack is perfect for pre-schoolers attending for crèche, kindy or daycare but if you're looking for a school bag then all of these fantastic features apply to the Penny Scallan Large Backpack as well. The only difference, apart from being larger overall, is it has a fifth pocket which makes an additional main pocket. We use the largest main pocket for Maddie's books and the smaller main pocket for her lunchbox. The two main pockets are separated by a thick internal wall. I like having a dedicated lunchbox pocket so if anything should spill it won't seep through to her books. And they way the kids seem to chuck, kick and throw their backpacks around, that scratch resistant surface sure is sure appreciated once they start school. Maddie wears the Pineapple Bunting design which gets commented on all the time.

I can see that these backpacks will be lasting us for years. They are a simple, effective, no fuss design made from top quality materials and a really high standard of workmanship. They are a fantastic size and really comfortable for the kids to wear. The fabrics are colourful, unique and age appropriate. Penny Scallan ticked all of the boxes and some for us and we are so glad to have found this beautiful range.

Does this sound like something you'd like for your little one? Penny Scallan has kindly offered us a $50 voucher for one lucky reader to spend at their online store www.pennyscallan.co.nz.

To enter simply head over to our Facebook page and find the original Penny Scallan Backpack post and complete the two following tasks: